Kai saw the quick shift in Fala’s balance, just enough to loosen his hold.Fala slammed her heel down on Usti’s instep. She drove her shoulder forward the way Kai had taught her?—
Usti cursed and reeled back. In a breath, he targeted Fala.
That quick span of time felt like an eternity. Kai saw the decision enter his eyes. Saw his grip whiten around the knife hilt. She felt every unfathomable inch of space between her and Fala?—
Usti thrust his knife forward?—
Inola appeared in that space like a ghost.
Usti’s knife plunged into her stomach.
Her eyes went wide. Pain. Shock. And then… Peace.
“No!” Usti staggered back, eyes going wild.
Inola crumpled to her knees with a soft gasp.
Usti’s rage-filled eyes landed on Fala again.
Fala jerked out of his reach. Her foot caught in the slick path and she slipped?—
The current took her. Dragged her toward the ledge. She scrambled for purchase.
“Fala!” Kai screamed, her voice swallowed by the roar of rushing water.
Atsadi was already moving, a blur, sprinting through the deluge. His boots scraped wet stone, his hand outstretched.
Fala slipped closer to the ledge, feet going over?—
Atsadi dove.
Little Gus caught the Vorash in his claws.
The impact cracked like thunder. Black feathers exploded in a cloud as the two beasts collided.
Fury, rage, and violence pulsed through Selene’s mind—raw, feral, not her own. Flashes of void-black eyes. Blood. Bone.
The unholy beast dared attack from behind.
Removed him from his sacred duty.
He would not fail them. Not this time.
“Selene!”
She blinked, her vision clearing.
Augustus clutched her face, worry etched in every line. Behind him,battle raged. Steel clanged. Voices roared. Beyond the shoreline, ships were locked in cannon fire, sails torn and mastheads crumbling.
“Are you all right?” he asked.
Selene scanned the sky.
Little Gus streaked by, flames streaming ahead. The Vorash shrieked and reeled from the blast, but it’s longer wings surged, forcing their battle higher, faster, into the gathering storm clouds above.
“Yes,” Selene finally answered. “It’s Gus. His thoughts and feelings… They’re overwhelming.”
Augustus nodded and glanced up briefly, then across the dunes. “My dad...”
